New Beginnings
By the time she reads this, she’ll be married, and I will have had the honor of walking her down the aisle and dancing the father/daughter dance with her. Her husband, as far as I can tell, is a good man, a kind and decent man, exactly the sort of man any parents would wish…
Read MoreFinding the What Via the Why
Many years ago, I wrote the title story of my first collection, The Least You Need to Know. I remember when the narrative reached a point of resolution, and I sat there knowing something was still missing. I realized I didn’t know why my narrator was telling this particular story. That’s when I heard him…
Read MoreMaking the Small into Something Large
One of my favorite short stories is “Killings” by Andre Dubus. The major event of the story, the revenge killing of a man who has murdered the main character’s son, is large, but within the narrative that moves to this climax, there are smaller, quieter moments that are equally significant. One such moment occurs in…
Read MoreRestarting the Writing Process after Time Away
Cathy and I are back home after a splendid week away on the shore of Lake Erie, and now, like some of you, perhaps, I’m faced with getting back to work on an unfinished manuscript that I left alone while I was gone. “You don’t get good by wishing to be,” the poet, Stephen Dunn,…
Read MoreKeep Doing the Good Work
Cathy and I going on a vacation. We’re going off the grid, we keep saying, but here I am writing this blog post so I can share it with you. Yesterday I said to her, “I’m not sure I know how to do this vacay-thing. I mean, what am I supposed to be doing?” “Relaxing,”…
Read MoreA Father’s Legacy
My father was born on June 14, 1913—Flag Day. Each year, when he was still alive, he’d drive down the main street of our small town and point to all the flags flying and say, “They’ve put the flags out for my birthday again.” He took great pleasure in saying this; it was just a…
Read MoreUsing Relics in Narratives
Yesterday, my wife Cathy was sorting through her purse when she came upon her now-expired YMCA membership card. “I guess I don’t need this anymore,” she said. Indeed our membership cards are now relics of a before-time that no longer exists, that time when COVID had yet to arrive. During the pandemic, we bought our…
Read MoreThe Scent of Peonies: Sensory Details and Memoir
Compared to a year ago, the world seems a bit more open. With COVID positivity rates dropping and mask mandates relaxing, a certain degree of normalcy is returning to our lives. I fear, though, that too many people think this signals the end of the pandemic, but, of course, it doesn’t. There’s still too much…
Read MoreHidden Power: Where Are You in Your Narratives?
Our new battery-powered riding lawnmower had its maiden voyage yesterday, and Cathy, who took the wheel, reports that it did great. When you turn the key, you don’t hear anything, and you might be tempted to believe there’s a malfunction. When you put the mower in gear, though, and back up or go forward, it…
Read MoreComplicated Motivations: Doing Work with Our Characters before The Writing Begins
For those of you following our lawnmower saga, I thought you might be interested to know that Cathy and I decided to order a 38-inch-cut rider from Ryobi. Yep, we’re going electric. Two hours of cutting time on a single charge, no gas, no oil, no spark plug. It’s supposed to arrive by June 1.…
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